Each major network has a reality TV juggernaut which, despite hit and miss ratings, can't be destroyed. CBS has three: "Survivor", "Big Brother" and "The Amazing Race". NBC has "The Apprentice". ABC has "The Bachelor/ette". Although nobody will consider ABC's show "Masterpiece Theater" material, it still boasts high entertainment.
This, of course, is the only one of the bunch not involving a fat check or Trump job at the end of it. Instead, it's the Romance Card. 25 or more successful career women who want to "settle down" (biological clock ticking away) all vie for an eligible bachelor "of breeding". Ridiculous rose ceremonies aside, there's always high drama and hyper-active emotions (fueled by wine on occasion), catfights galore and some of the most colorful femme fatale in reality TV (like Trish in Jesse Palmer's season). Make whatever opinion you like, you can't say this show is boring: Jason's surprise "After The Rose" finale didn't top the Nielsen ratings for nothing.
Some bachelors are more telegenic than others. Generally speaking, seasons are liked or disliked according to the star. Andrew Firestone was the most-liked, followed by Byron (one of two still with his Final 1, though not officially married). Others like Lorenzo and Dr. Travis did much better as salesmen and TV show hosts than as the focal center of a TV harem. (Astrological trivia: more Bachelors are Cancers than any other sign... which explains the heavy emphasis on "meeting the parents" in both the "hometown dates" and finale.)
Host Chris Harrison is always there tapping the wine glass and announcing the rose ceremonies (the only boring part of the show). Fortunately, he isn't a robotic host. His interviews with both the lead and the competing ladies are quite heart-felt. His popularity, no doubt, influenced the more touchy-feely tribal councils that Jeff Probst has presided in more recent seasons of "Survivor".
I, for one, prefer "The Bachelorette"... I guess because it hasn't lost its novelty value. So far, all of these were initially with "The Bachelor". (Apparently, Fleiss & Co. has been slow seeking an "unknown" woman, just as they've been slow to cast a non-Caucasian.) Their experience as part of a group of 25 gives them a better understanding of what their male suitors are going through when the tables turn.
This, of course, is the only one of the bunch not involving a fat check or Trump job at the end of it. Instead, it's the Romance Card. 25 or more successful career women who want to "settle down" (biological clock ticking away) all vie for an eligible bachelor "of breeding". Ridiculous rose ceremonies aside, there's always high drama and hyper-active emotions (fueled by wine on occasion), catfights galore and some of the most colorful femme fatale in reality TV (like Trish in Jesse Palmer's season). Make whatever opinion you like, you can't say this show is boring: Jason's surprise "After The Rose" finale didn't top the Nielsen ratings for nothing.
Some bachelors are more telegenic than others. Generally speaking, seasons are liked or disliked according to the star. Andrew Firestone was the most-liked, followed by Byron (one of two still with his Final 1, though not officially married). Others like Lorenzo and Dr. Travis did much better as salesmen and TV show hosts than as the focal center of a TV harem. (Astrological trivia: more Bachelors are Cancers than any other sign... which explains the heavy emphasis on "meeting the parents" in both the "hometown dates" and finale.)
Host Chris Harrison is always there tapping the wine glass and announcing the rose ceremonies (the only boring part of the show). Fortunately, he isn't a robotic host. His interviews with both the lead and the competing ladies are quite heart-felt. His popularity, no doubt, influenced the more touchy-feely tribal councils that Jeff Probst has presided in more recent seasons of "Survivor".
I, for one, prefer "The Bachelorette"... I guess because it hasn't lost its novelty value. So far, all of these were initially with "The Bachelor". (Apparently, Fleiss & Co. has been slow seeking an "unknown" woman, just as they've been slow to cast a non-Caucasian.) Their experience as part of a group of 25 gives them a better understanding of what their male suitors are going through when the tables turn.